Pink Strawberry Lemonade Cake (Printer View)

Moist layer cake with fresh strawberries and zesty lemonade notes, finished with luscious pink frosting.

# What You'll Need:

→ For the Cake

01 - 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2 teaspoons baking powder
03 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
04 - 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
05 - 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
06 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
07 - 1/2 cup vegetable oil
08 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
09 - 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
10 - 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
11 - 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
12 - 1/2 cup strawberry purée
13 - Pink or red food coloring, optional

→ For the Strawberry Lemonade Frosting

14 - 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
15 - 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
16 - 1/3 cup strawberry purée
17 - 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
18 - 1 teaspoon lemon zest
19 - Pinch of salt
20 - Pink food coloring, optional

→ Decoration

21 - Fresh strawberries, sliced
22 - Lemon slices or zest
23 - Edible flowers or sprinkles, optional

# Method Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a large bowl using an electric mixer, cream together sugar, butter, and oil until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
04 - Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
05 - Mix in buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest until combined.
06 - Gently fold in strawberry purée. Add food coloring drops for vibrant hue if desired.
07 - Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in two batches, mixing just until combined. Avoid overmixing.
08 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and smooth the tops.
09 - Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
10 - Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
11 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, strawberry purée, lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt. Beat until fluffy and tint with food coloring if desired.
12 - Place one cooled cake layer on a serving plate. Spread a generous frosting layer on top. Add second cake layer and frost top and sides.
13 - Decorate with fresh strawberries, lemon slices, and sprinkles as desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The strawberry and lemon combination tastes way more sophisticated than the ingredient list suggests, making you look like a baking genius.
  • It's moist enough to stay tender for days, so you can actually bake it ahead without the stress.
  • That pink frosting is so Instagram-worthy that your friends will ask for the recipe before they even taste it.
02 -
  • If your frosting looks broken or grainy after adding the strawberry purée, the purée was too warm or watery—bring the frosting back to room temperature and beat it again gently.
  • Don't skip the parchment paper circles; I learned this the hard way when my first layer stuck to the pan and split into two pieces.
03 -
  • Use gel food coloring instead of liquid—it won't thin out your frosting and produces more vibrant pink without needing extra food coloring.
  • If the frosting gets too soft while you're working, pop the bowl in the fridge for 5 minutes to firm it up before continuing.
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